LATEST: The technical chief of Mercedes was queried about rumors concerning Red Bull’s alleged replication in 2024
James Allison claims the Red Bull concept has “nothing whatsoever to do with the car,” despite rumors that Mercedes’ W15 may take more cues from it than just big sidepods
When Mercedes and Red Bull lined up side by side at the Bahrain Grand Prix in March 2022, with Mercedes taking the zero-pod route and Red Bull adopting the bulky downwash philosophy, it was obvious which car would win.
Before its offspring, the RB19, fared even better with 21 wins in 22 races, the championship double, and a one-two finish in the drivers’ standings, that was the Red Bull, the RB18, winning 17 of 22 Grands Prix and the championship double.
Mercedes sidestep Red Bull ‘concept’ question
Conversely, Mercedes’ W14 only managed one Grand Prix victory, which led the team to abandon the zero-pods in favor of a more Red Bull-like design for the updated W15. But that failed to win a single race.
Christian Horner has speculated that other 2024 models will resemble the Bull design, and Mercedes technical director Allison has responded to this speculation with a reluctance to commit.
He said to Sky’s post-season review, “These are such philosophical conversations, but to the mind of a designer, or a performance person in Formula 1, concept is actually nothing to do with the car.”
“Completely unrelated to the car itself.
“It pertains to a systematic approach for determining the criteria for excellence and identifying shortcomings.
“It involves the methodology used to sift through numerous potential components for the car and selecting only those believed to enhance lap performance. It’s a systematic approach.
“The car is simply the end result of employing that process.
“So, when discussing concepts, we’re referring to adjustments made in areas such as our wind tunnel weighting system or modifications in the way we measure computational fluid dynamics. That’s what concept signifies to us.
“And the car naturally emerges as the outcome when we apply that process and concept.
“Over the past two years, we’ve had to adapt our strategy, methodology, or concept, if you will. Consequently, the hardware that emerges on the other side will inevitably differ because it is shaped by distinct decisions and prioritizations of what is deemed important and what is not.”
What may be inferred from Aston Martin
Lewis Hamilton’s recent remarks that it is not worthwhile to duplicate a team’s vehicle in the long run are consistent with Allison’s hesitation to state that the W15 will take inspiration from the Red Bull.
Consider Aston Martin.
Lead by former Red Bull athlete Dan Fallows, the AMR23 started off quickly, but the crew made a mistake with the car’s modifications.
“Aston tried to imitate an automobile, but the result wasn’t the same. It’s not that simple; you have to attempt to take the best elements and then, by trial and error, just try to add more elements, Hamilton remarked.
However, you can see that they are also afraid of making the wrong adjustment or one that is too drastic.
“We have a huge gap to close, so we need to be consistently adding performance week after week. We have higher targets than ever before.” It becomes quite difficult as a result.
